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Service Business - Ethan Siu A service business is created by a professional or a team of experts that complete tasks which offer intangible value that may not necessarily involve a physical product for their customers. Service businesses deliver products that are mainly composed of personal labour, skill, and talent to deliver the service. Nowadays, advanced economies have focused more on services and as a result, the total value of services sometimes exceed the total value of products as a percentage of the country’s GDP. The customer service experience is a very important part of a service business and contributes towards a business’s success. The customer service experience is all the things that a business does to ensure the satisfaction and happiness of the customer. Often, the experience that a service business offers is what distinguishes it from its competitors. This can include the quality of completed work, the friendliness of the employees, how efficient they are at the job, their ability to answer any inquiries, and if they are able to solve any problems that arise. Examples of service businesses include: * Transportation services ** Airlines ** Bicycle rental shops * Entertainment industries ** Movie theatres * Financial services ** Banking ** Insurance * Professional services ** Lawyers ** Accountants * Hospitality ** Hotels ** Restaurants Merchandising Business - Amy Dong A merchandising business primarily operates by purchasing ready-made products and re-selling them for a profit. Merchandising businesses can deal with both companies and individuals as clients by acting as a distributor or a retailer. As well, upon purchase, merchandising businesses transfer the ownership of the product to the customer. Merchandising businesses that operate with individuals may provide receipts as proof of purchase while a merchandising business that deals with companies may provide invoices. Examples of merchandising businesses include auto dealerships and supermarkets. In an auto dealership, salesmen make commission by purchasing cars from manufacturers (like Nissan, Honda, and Ford) and sell them to individuals. Similarly, supermarkets purchase their products from farms to resell to consumers. In both cases, merchandising businesses make a profit because they provide convenience and ease of access to the customer. For an example, it is easier for a family to purchase groceries from a local market than to travel to a farm. h&m.jpg ccp-no-frills-full-time.jpg download.jpg An Accountant's Role In A Merchandising Business Accounting is important in a merchandising business because operations revolve primarily around purchasing and financing. Accountants must track the accounts payable owed to the manufacturers of their products and the accounts receivable of purchases made on credit. As well, bookkeeping can be used to keep track of inventory. To operate an effective business, products offered must be kept readily available for the customer upon purchase, but an excess in supply can result in storage costs. This is especially crucial in merchandising businesses because they are both product-based and rely on convenience as appeal. Merchandising Business vs. Service Business The main difference between service businesses and merchandising businesses is that a merchandising business offers a product while aptly named service businesses provide a service. This is generally easy to differentiate (a spa is a service business while a beauty supply store is a merchandising business), but sometimes these categories may overlap. For an example, a hair salon may offer haircare products from a variety of manufacturers for customers to purchase in addition to their services. However, only the main revenue stream should be considered when categorizing a business. In the case of a hair salon, their services like haircuts and treatments are the primary source of income. Therefore, hair salons are a service business rather than a merchandising business. Merchandising Business vs. Non-Profit Organization The main characteristic of a non-profit organization is that they operate without profit in consideration. In comparison, merchandising businesses most often seek to generate profit. As well, while non-profit may sell products to raise money (ie. Poppies for the Legion), they usually host short-term campaigns and fundraisers as their primary source of income whereas merchandising businesses have the continual resale of their products as the main revenue stream. Merchandising Business vs. Manufacturing Business The main difference between a merchandising business and a manufacturing business is that manufacturing business process raw materials to create a new product which provides greater utility to the customer while merchandising businesses do not undergo the same process. However, these two forms of business can be closely related. Often, merchandising businesses rely on manufacturing businesses to provide their products. For an example, a clothing store (like H&M) relies on purchasing clothing from manufacturers to resell. Manufacturing Business - Ghanan Jeeva Manufacturing businesses refers to organizations that sell goods that were directly processed from raw materials. In most cases, these manufacturing businesses sell their products to consumers, distributors, or wholesalers.Through manufacturing plants, these businesses put together products using assembly lines run by humans, machines, and computers in order to be efficient. Examples of manufacturing businesses include companies like Toyota, Honda, Apple, Panasonic, etc. There are 3 main types of manufacturing production: Make-to-stock(MTS) refers to the strategy of planning the production activity based on past sales data to predict the consumer demand. The drawback to this traditional manufacturing strategy is that the prediction of the future demand is based off of past sales, meaning that the chance of the prediction being wrong can lead to a surplus or deficit in inventory. Contrary to MTS, make-to-order(MTO) refers to when the production begins after a customer orders a product to their specifications(custom product). Although the the customer will have to wait several times longer for their product, this type of production eliminates the possibility of surplus or deficit inventory. Using both aspects of MTS and MTO, make-to-assemble(MTA) refers to the strategy of stockpiling basic components of products(based on predictions of consumer demands) and then assembling when an order is received. Through this method, consumers will receive their customized product in a shorter amount of time. On the other hand, if the business does not receive many orders, then the manufacturer will be left with unwanted stock. Almost every day to day product we use was once produced by a manufacturing business. Although we not have directly purchased them from manufacturers themselves, we have at least purchased from merchandisers who received their products from manufacturers. Non-Profit Organization - Balan Pengat A non-profit organization is an organization that dedicates itself to furthering a particular social cause or advocating for a shared point of view. One characteristic of a non-profit is that it uses its surplus of revenue to achieve its ultimate objective. They do this instead of distributing its income to the company's shareholders, leaders, or members. One example of a non-profit organization is Rotary International. One key characteristic of a non-profit company is that they are tax-exempt or charitable. This means that they do not pay income tax on the money that they receive for their company. There are 5 different types of non-profit organizations: Educational non-profits are organizations that focus on offering education to children and adults in order to help them learn new skills. Some examples include schools, day care centers, colleges, and universities. These organizations help offer educational opportunities to those who may not be able to afford otherwise. Research non-profits are organizations that establish their business in order to perform research to assist the medical community, the environment, wildlife, and cultures. The goal of these organizations is to improve the environment or individuals. Soe examples of how these organizations help the medical community is by helping find cures for medical diseases and conditions, as well as improving environments such as rainforests and other ecosystems. Community non-profit organizations develop programs and raise awareness of services in different communities. These organizations include child care, recreational activities, health programs, and other services designed to assist in improving the lives of individuals and families in their respected communities. Religious non-profits are organizations that are owned and operated by different religious organizations. These organizations offer a variety of services to specific communities or cultures that the religious organization supports. They may also provide basic necessities to those in need. One example of a religious non-profit is a church. Artistic/Creative non-profits are organizations that promote and support different artistic and creative endeavors. Some of these endeavors include art galleries, orchestras, symphonies, theaters, and dance groups. These organizations also provide youth programs in order to spark interest within the youth in their respected communities towards the art. These non-profits typically fundraise through different public performances and community events in order to support their organizations financially.